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Why We Like This Place

An architectural tour de force, the opulent Park Plaza embodies the rich and decadent boomtown times of Los Angeles before the 1929 stock market crash. Built in 1925 (it was originally an Elks Lodge), the Hotel languished into a lamentable state of disrepair during the 80s and 90s. Fortunately, it’s been rescued from ruin by the same folks who refurbished the Oviatt. Finishing touches on the extensive facelift were completed in October of ‘99.

Don’t expect to hold a shy and demure event here. The sheer scale and splendor of the building calls for affairs on the grander end of the spectrum. Big weddings, band premieres and corporate Christmas parties are equal to the Park Plaza’s sensibility.

Hold onto your hat when exploring this location, because much of your time will be spent with head tipped back, ogling its many wonders. Occupying almost an entire city block, the building’s façade is embellished by a series of arches, pilasters, cornices and majestic friezes featuring intriguing statuary of Roman women. This neoclassical motif is carried over to the inside as well. Enchanting you from the moment you step across the transom is the Park Plaza Lobby, a cathedrallike space with a Romanesque vaulted ceiling at least three stories high. Sunlight streams through the immense Palladian glass doorway and fanlight, burnishing the Tennessee-rose granite floor.

The Park Plaza offers a plethora of exhilarating event sites. On the ground floor is the Gold Ballroom, the Park’s most intimate space. Just right for cocktails or small seated dinners, this space boasts dark wood wainscoting, tasseled antique chandeliers and Corinthian pilasters whose tops are crowned in gleaming gold leaf. Equally gorgeous is the Bronze Ballroom, featuring burgundy wall-to-wall carpeting, a mammoth Art Deco bar, hand-stenciled ceiling beams and fantastic columns gilded in copper leaf. On the room’s south side, glass doors open out onto the Tuscan Garden. This private open-air courtyard, filled with greenery and flower planters, is a beautiful setting for exchanging vows.

Take the magnificent stairway up from the Lobby, turn left and you’ll encounter our favorite event site—the Grand Ballroom. It is, in a word, spectacular. On either side of the room twin colonnades create a linear dynamism, drawing the eye along the length of the room. The meticulously restored beamed ceilings showcase hand-painted floral designs, patterned after a palace ceiling in Florence. Chandeliers suspended from the beams spotlight these amazing works of art. Not to be outdone is the Terrace Room, the hotel’s most capacious ballroom. Art Deco in motif, and featuring elaborate wall sconces and a ceiling of dizzying height, this vast multilevel space can accommodate almost any kind of pageantry you can dream up.

One of Los Angeles’ best kept secrets, the Park Plaza has become the place for film shoots, record launchings, wrap parties and Hollywood bashes. In fact, at a birthday party for a “recently arrived” star, the hotel was packed with glitterati. And even these jaded, been-everywhere-done-everything luminaries could be overheard exclaiming, “I never knew this place existed; it’s SO beautiful!”

Fees & Deposits

A signed contract plus a nonfundable deposit equal to 15% of the estimated event total are required to secure your date. 65% of the event total is due 90 days prior to the event, and the balance is due 30 days prior. A 10% refundable security deposit is due 14 days prior. Catering packages are available, and range $115–210/person including staff and rentals.